12 Steps (1/2)

It was the same hallway Mike had been mopping for the past ten years. Today was no different. He continued counting the tiles on the floor as he swept his mop across them. As he proceeded down the hallway, his ears picked up noise coming from the door ahead.

'That's the break room', he thought, 'Are some people fucking in there again? Those stains are hell to clean!'. He fumed silently as he got closer to the door. On hearing laughter instead of love-making, his expression relaxed and he continued mopping merrily till he realized that there was nothing 'merry' about mopping.

Tom and Patricia were seated across from one another, coffee cups in their hands and liquid on the table. They just had a good guffaw. Tom wiped the tears from the corner of his eye. 'To be honest', he thought, 'Patricia is a really fun person. I'd chat longer, but I've got work to do'. He gradually let his expression turn into a crafty one. Leaning toward the woman opposite, he lowered his voice as they continued chatting.

The atmosphere around a person or situation had a lot to do when one seeks to obtain anything. A child would have a higher chance to get that chocolate bar when the mother was in a happy mood. A student could get a retest after their teacher got a raise. A partner could be put to bed if the hormones in the atmosphere were on a high. And in Tom's case, one could obtain information as long as he exuded the gossipy atmosphere and lingo that Patricia was so used too. And it looked like it was working perfectly.

But he was a bit shocked, to be honest. When Alpha gave him precise instructions regarding the method, words and dressing he needed to execute this, he almost bonked his head. Almost. Dying for such a stupid reason was not on his bucket list. But here he was and all was proceeding smoothly. 'This man is a genius!', he thought. 'He's also a cold-blooded killer', he shivered remembering the massacre. Shaking his head slightly, he turned his focus once again to the job at hand.

Patricia grinned inwardly. She had successfully reeled into capturing distance. It wasn't easy to create an atmosphere as such; one where she'd be able to fully go into her ranting about everyone and everything. Now that she was in, though, it was only a matter of time before she got this man to spill his guts.

She noticed that he had leaned in during their conversation and chose this moment to strike. "I heard an interesting piece of news y'know?", she tentatively spoke. She wasn't 100% sure that Tom was entirely in the mood though, so she started out soft.

"Oh? How coincidental... I did too", he replied, glancing at the door and lowering his voice even more. "You go first", he said. Patricia nodded happily. "It's actually about you, to be honest", she confessed. Tom widened his eyes in bewilderment. He was half-acting, half-shocked. Alpha had predicted this line of conversation as well!

She continued nodding as she saw he wasn't against her speaking. "What's going around the office now is that... your trip to Mexico City wasn't primarily for work". He stiffened. Moment of truth. Either she found out about his obsession leading him there or the plan proceeded well.

She leaned closer and trained her eyes to his and finally dropped her 'bombshell'. "They say you went to Mexico City because you wanted to meet with your mistress again. And that you brought her back with you this time". Tom resisted the urge to smack Patricia's head to the table.

She was basing her speculations on one of the more predominant rumours going about his divorce. Because he and his wife were very busy with work, as soon as their last child was weaned, they employed a maid/nanny to take care of the house and kids while they weren't present. She was a Mexican like most nannies were. She was very capable and friendly so everyone got along with her very well. She was beautiful too. And that's what brought about the 'issues'

Tom's ex-wife was possessive of him, even towards the maid. So whenever she saw them laughing or speaking to one another, a round of hard work and warnings were in store for the poor girl once Tom was out of earshot. But Tom was a charismatic person; even the maid found it hard to avoid laughing when he began his antics. He was perceptive enough to notice her increasing restraint around him though. Confused, he asked his wife, wondering if it was a 'woman thing' that she needed help with.

Contrary to his expectations, however, she blew up when he brought his concerns to her. He was able to deduce, however, that the changes in the maid were caused by his wife. They had squabbles regarding the poor girl, one of them being in public. This caused the populace to begin whispering. It was, after all, a classic case of adultery: The husband fucking the nanny. The two getting a divorce a year later and the ex-wife firing the maid only served to cement this story even more.

Patricia waited nervously as she watched Tom. His expression had changed more times than she could count. He finally sighed and rubbed his forehead. "If I could just get my hands on the idiot who starts these nonsense rumours...", he spoke, sounding tired. Patricia grimaced slightly; she was the one who had just created the rumour.

"So?", she inquired, "Is it true? Did you go elope with the maid?". "No. No. I really didn't", he replied, "and I never slept with that maid. Damn. How many years and that shit is still going around? My assignment got an extension for some strange reason. Which brings me to my, uh, piece of news".

Tom glanced at the door again then carried his chair to Patricia's side of the table. Her eyes narrowed. This seemed big. They leaned in close as soon as he was seated. "I heard there's a conspiracy going on", he whispered. "That's why they installed those brain wave scanners and those guys in PR got promoted". He had mixed in a lie to have Patricia give out the truth.